He burned down the Temple, the palace, and the houses of all the important people in Jerusalem,

and our Temple, the sacred and beautiful place where our ancestors praised you, has been destroyed by fire. All the places we loved are in ruins.

The king was very angry; so he sent his soldiers, who killed those murderers and burned down their city.

You have broken your covenant with your servant and thrown his crown in the dirt.

to give you Israelites this message: You are proud of the strength of the Temple. You like to look at it and to visit it, but the LORD is going to profane it. And the younger members of your families who are left in Jerusalem will be killed in war.

Make an altar of earth for me, and on it sacrifice your sheep and your cattle as offerings to be completely burned and as fellowship offerings. In every place that I set aside for you to worship me, I will come to you and bless you.

Out of the territory of all your tribes the LORD will choose the one place where the people are to come into his presence and worship him.

"And now the LORD has kept his promise. I have succeeded my father as king of Israel, and I have built the Temple for the worship of the LORD God of Israel.